Parasites, those you see and those you don’t, are a constant danger to pets. While we can see fleas, ticks, and tapeworms, there are parasites too small to see living inside of our beloved companions. Some of those parasites can infect our human family members too.
We will recommend parasite control based on the risk of exposure to certain parasites against the potential side effects (which are fortunately very rare). At the OC Veterinary Medical Center, we like to assess parasite control on an individual basis based on your pet’s lifestyle.
Important facts:
1) Fleas are a year-round menace in California which are not only gross, but also cause illness. Many dogs (and people) are allergic to them causing severe itching. Fleas also carry a host of diseases including tapeworms, cat-scratch fever, typhus, and the plague. We recommend newer oral products as the older topical products have become less effective in controlling fleas. In 6 weeks a house can go from 2 fleas to millions of fleas due to their rapid breeding.
2) There are ticks in our local Orange County hills as well as other parts of the state. Ticks spread some pretty nasty diseases as well as being incredibly disgusting. Male ticks are very small and can be missed. Fortunately, our risk of diseases spread by our local ticks are low but 6/1000 dogs are likely infected by tick spread diseases based on most recent data (and that’s based only on those pets tested. The majority of dogs are not tested or on parasite control.
3) We have mosquitoes year round and they spread a multitude of diseases, especially Heartworm. We do have Heartworm in Orange County. 3.7 dogs of every 1000 tested in Orange County were heartworm positive this year, up from 2.8 per 1000 tested last year. Again this data doesn’t account for untested dogs. (data from CAPC Parasite Prevalance)
4) Cats and small dogs get parasites too. Even indoor cats get fleas. In order to eliminate fleas and other parasites all pets in the household need protection.
Recommended protection:
Trifexis is recommended for most dogs. Trifexis covers fleas, heartworm, and most intestinal worms. Give Trifexis monthly for optimal protection. It is the most cost effective comprehensive treatment.
Proheart 6 and Bravecto together are a great combination if ticks are an issue or your dog does not tolerate or like the taste of Trifexis. We also feel that they are great for people who have trouble remembering to give medication monthly. Proheart is an injection given every 6 months for heartworm and intestinal worms. Bravecto is a pill given every 3 months for fleas and ticks. This combination gives comprehensive coverage along with ease of use.
Revolution is what we recommend for cats: it covers fleas, ticks, mites, and heart worm. It is topical which more people like.
We cannot protect against all parasites. A fecal test and an annual examination are recommend to help make sure your pet is parasite free.
We have many options in the fight against parasites, many not even mentioned in this article. Please give us a call for an appointment to make sure your pet is fully protected.